


Mother Figure

by Maya_Koppori



Category: Miraculous Ladybug
Genre: Family, Gen, healthy eating, let the boy eat, mama cheng
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-02-11
Updated: 2016-02-11
Packaged: 2018-05-19 16:44:43
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,789
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/5974441
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Maya_Koppori/pseuds/Maya_Koppori
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Adrien's strict modelling diet is perfectly balanced, just not for him. Sabine Cheng knows a child in need when she sees one. This will not stand in her household.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Mother Figure

Sabine Dupain-Cheng was not blind; and what's more, she was a mother. She skimmed the magazines Marinette bought with her allowance, and she saw the golden haired boy that featured in every one. So when her daughter’s classmate showed up on their doorstep with his impeccable manners and respectful “pleased to meet you”’s and a smile that flustered Marinette more than Sabine or Tom had ever seen, they agreed that they wanted to see this boy again. They were delighted when the gradual dip in Marinette’s physics grade was solved by regular tutoring sessions above the bakery.

And the more she saw of Adrien Agreste, the more Sabine liked him. He spoke very decent Chinese, and even did the family a favor by translating for her uncle on his visit. They held short conversations sometimes before Marinette would arrive, breathless from a frenzied sweep of her room, and spirit him upstairs to work on homework. Despite being a well-off young man of some fame, he was very friendly and humble. Marinette obviously thought the world of him, and so therefore did Sabine and Tom; after all, their daughter was an excellent judge of character.

The more Sabine saw of Adrien Agreste, the more she worried about him. He was a high school boy with an extremely demanding job that most adults couldn’t handle. She listened, stunned, as Marinette rattled off the gauntlet of activities the boy was involved in. Piano, fencing, Chinese, modelling, and all of that on top of school; it was a mystery how he found time to visit at all!

He declined to stay for dinner most of the days he came over, and when they did manage to convince him, he picked at his plate like a newly hatched bird. With an ease that frightened her, Adrien deflected Sabine’s every concern. “A model’s diet is perfectly tailored,” his words and smiles assured her. “My father insists on it. Every activity is taken into account to balance out meals and make sure I stay in top form.” And then Marinette had murmured something about a school project and they were off once again before Sabine could protest. Her daughter’s distant voice called, “Thanks for dinner, maman!” just as Adrien chimed in with his “Thank you, madame!”

Well, Sabine called hogwash. Hogwash and phooey and balderdash. She knew how healthy teenagers ate, and this was not it. The lanky boy before her held himself with confidence and pride born from a lifetime of training, but not with an ounce of fulfillment. It was as if his lithe body was a frame, just waiting for his insides to find the sustenance they needed to support it and fill it out. It was about time someone said something.

It was bound to happen eventually, just as it was bound to happen with her.

“I know it isn’t my place,” she said softly one afternoon, causing Adrien to start. It was one of those rare occasions when they were alone. Tom had taken Marinette out on a last minute rush delivery, leaving Sabine to host Adrien until they returned. The boy had been more than happy to wait, and they had been drinking tea in the living room when Sabine sat down next to him and broke the peaceful silence.

“Madame?” the boy asked, enduringly polite and detached. He looked and sounded so small, sitting on the Dupain’s sofa with a straight spine and locked knees. It made her heart ache to be unable to make him feel comfortable enough to relax.

“It isn’t my place, but that hardly matters now,” Sabine said decisively, raising her voice. She set down her cup on the coffee table and met his eyes. “Adrien, I’m concerned. What you’re doing, it isn’t healthy at all.”

Guarded green eyes met hers, hesitant to answer. “Madame Cheng, I can assure you…” He trailed off, caught in her disbelieving stare.

Sabine clucked her tongue. “Adrien, you’re a growing boy. You’re not giving your body what it needs to keep up with its growth. Why, even Marinette eats more than you do to keep herself healthy, and I can barely get her to come out jogging with me anymore.” She pinned him with a searching gaze. “So either you’re not eating as much as you should, or you’re eating the exact right amount for someone who’s less active than you are.”

Panic charged the air around Adrien in an instant, and when he finally set his own saucer down it was with a clatter that he’d never been careless enough to cause before. His breath came heavy and hard, and he looked anywhere but at her. “I- Madame Cheng, you’re mistaken. I told you before, everything is fine.”

Sabine’s expression softened. She had never wanted to frighten the boy. “Oh, my dear,” she sighed. “I’m not going to interrogate you. Just know that I worry about you. If your father really is decided on your eating habits, then whatever is left is up to _you._ If you won’t let us take care of you, then please at least try to take care of yourself.”

Adrien still wouldn’t look at her, and Sabine was okay with that. She had pried, and pushed, but she couldn’t help herself.

“...” Adrien mumbled, still studying the carpet.

“What was that?”

He took a bracing breath. “I said… I’m sorry for worrying you. You’re right. I have been more active lately, and I didn’t take the time to think about how that would affect my health if I didn’t adjust accordingly.” He did look at her then, shyly, from behind his hair. “But even if I wanted to tell father about it… I couldn’t. It’s not exactly a consistent exercise routine. Does that make sense?”

Did it make sense for a boy whose life had been scheduled since birth to keep secrets from his parent? It was worrying, but of course it made sense. He was a teenager.

“Then you don’t have to. You’re perfectly welcome here,” Sabine reminded him. She reached out a hand and patted his knee comfortingly, and was relieved when he didn’t flinch away as she’d half expected. “We won’t be telling anyone if you eat a croissant or two as long as it keeps you healthy and safe.”

The gratitude in Adrien’s eyes was well worth the tense conversation. He smiled at her, and for the first time since she’d met him it felt genuine. “Thank you, Madame Cheng. I’ll keep that in mind.”

“Maman, we’re back!” Marinette yelled from downstairs in the bakery. She raced up the stairs to find her mother and Adrien quietly drinking tea. “Adrien, I am so sorry about that. We can do the homework now, if you’re ready.”

“Yeah. Yeah, that’d be great.” Adrien gathered his bag from its place near the doorway and began to follow Marinette to the stairwell.

Sabine called for her daughter’s attention. “Marinette, would a little quiche be alright for a snack?”

“Yes maman,” Marinette grinned. She mounted the stairs, Adrien following behind.

As he passed, his stomach rumbled and he flinched. Turning back to Sabine for an instant, he asked “Madame, could I…?”

Sabine smiled. “We’re having lasagna for dinner. Now hurry along with your homework.”

“Yes maman,” he echoed back without thinking, and froze. His right hand shot to his mouth, trying to take back his slip-up, and his face began to turn bright red. “I- I mean-”

“Homework,” Sabine chided, but the effect was lost in the ecstatic grin on her face. Slowly, Adrien grinned back.

* * *

“Wahoooooo!” Chat Noir’s screams of delight echoed through the city as he ran. He raced across the rooftops, tumbling and sailing through the night as he went. He had thought he was strong before; fencing and superpowers tend to contribute to that. But after a solid month of packing in the calories at the Dupain bakery, he could feel the difference in the way his body moved. Hunger pangs no longer kept him awake after patrols. His shoulders had filled out, and his biceps swelled and stretched against the fabric of his suit.

His father’s team of designers had nearly fainted when they saw him. “I tailored this jacket myself!” one had cried in despair, staring in disbelief at the material pulled tight across his arms but barely too short. “How did you bulk up this much in two weeks?!”

Chat shook his head, clearing it of inconsequential thoughts. Oh, but what he could do with this newfound strength! He laughed aloud again, and jumped from the rooftops down to the streets. On the way down he caught a flagpole and pulled a spectacular one handed spin before finally coming to rest at the designated spot in a secluded side street.

Half a second ahead of him, Ladybug swung down from the same rooftop and he landed not a foot from her. “Getting faster, aren’t you alley cat?” she asked breezily. “That’s the first time you’ve almost beaten me in a fair race.”

Chat grinned and performed a flourishing bow for his lady. “What can I say? Maybe your good luck is finally rubbing off on me.”

Ladybug rolled her eyes. “I don’t think that’s it. Just please tell me you’re not hitting _another_ growth spurt. I won’t be able to take it if you get much taller.”

“Not taller,” he admitted. Leaning his back against the alley wall, he jokingly flexed a bicep. “Just buffing up. I got some pretty good advice from a very wise and very generous lady about my eating habits, and it’s working wonders.”

“Huh,” was all Ladybug said, but Chat caught her eyes wandering to his arms, chest, and shoulders, trying to see the change in them.

Chat chuckled and shot her a wink. “I’d say look, don’t touch, but the opposite applies to you, my lady.”

“Pffft, stop it Chat.”

“Come on, you know you want to.”

“Please.”

“Well, since you asked so nicely…”

Ladybug finally laughed. “Alright, kitty. If you can beat me to the Tower, I might just take you up on that.”

Chat made a sweeping gesture with his arm, purposefully flexing it again. “Ladies first. I’ll even give you a head start; you’re going to need it.”

Before he could blink she was gone, and he was left talking to open air as the zing of her yoyo flew above him. Still as dazzling and quick as ever. Chat grinned and extended his staff, propelling himself into the air. Ladybug was still better than he was by a long shot, but at the rate Madame Cheng’s cooking was filling him out and strengthening him up… He might be able to beat Ladybug in another year or so.

 

**Author's Note:**

> #lettheboyeat2k16


End file.
